Important Questions & Answers: Self & Personality- 1 | Psychology Class 12 - Humanities/Arts PDF Download

Q.1. What are defence mechanisms?

Human behaviour reflects an attempt to deal with or escape from anxiety. Freud described various defence mechanisms which people use to reduce anxiety by distorting reality.

Q.2. What is personal identity?

Personal identity refers to those attributes of a person that make him or her different from others. For example, I am Sanjana or I am honest

Q.3. Differentiate between self as a subject and self as an object.

Self is described as a subject, who does something (e.g., I am a dancer) and as an object on which something is done (e.g., I am the one who easily gets hurt).

Q.4. What is ‘self-regulation’?

Self-regulation refers to our ability to organize and monitor our own behaviour. People who can change their behaviour according to demands of the external environment are high on self-monitoring. Resistance to situational pressures and control over ourselves is possible through will-power.

Q.5. Describe nomination as a method of assessment.

This method is used in obtaining peer assessment. In this each person is asked to choose one or more persons of the group with whom she/he would like to work, study, play or participate in an activity. The person may be asked to specify the reason for his or her choices.

Q.6. Explain the term ‘reaction formation’.

Reaction Formation is a type of defence mechanism in which a person defends against anxiety by adopting behaviours opposite to his or her true feelings. For e.g., a person with strong sexual urges channelises his or her energy into religious activity.

Q.7. Explain the term social identity.

Social identity refers to those aspects of a person that link him or her to a social or cultural group. For example, he is a Hindu or an adivasi.

Q.8. What are the characteristics of people with low self esteem?

Children with low self esteem display anxiety, depression and increasing antisocial behaviour.

Q.9. What is self-control or delay of gratification?

Learning to delay or defer the gratification of needs is called self-control. For example, fasting in vrata or roza.

Q.10. Describe the theory by Alfred Adler.

Alfred Adler is known by individual psychology in which he assumes that human behaviour is purposeful and goal-directed. Our personal goals are the sources of our motivation. In Adler’s view every individual suffers from the feelings of inadequacy and guilt i.e., inferiority complex which arise from childhood. Overcoming this complex is essential for optimal personality development.

Q.11. Describe the features of personality.

Personality is characterised by the following features:
(i) It has both physical and psychological components.
(ii) Its expression in terms of behaviour is fairly unique in a given individual.
(iii) Its main features do not easily change with time.
(iv) It is dynamic in the sense that some of its features may change due to internal or external situational demands, i.e. adaptive to situations.

Q.12. Describe Eysenck’s theory of personality.

H. J. Eysenck proposed that personality could be reduced into three dimensions:
(i) Neuroticism vs. Emotional Stability: At one end of the dimension there are people who are neurotic who are anxious, moody, touchy, restless and quickly lose control.
At the other extreme lie people who are calm, even-tempered, reliable and remain under control.
(ii) Extraversion vs. Introversion: At one extreme are people who are outgoing, active, gregarious, impulsive and thrill-seeking while at the other end are people who are withdrawn, passive quiet, cautious and reserved.
(iii) Psychoticism vs. Sociability: A psychotic person is hostile, egocentric and antisocial.

Q.13. What are the three levels of consciousness proposed by Sigmund Freud?

Freud described the human mind in terms of three levels of consciousness:
(i) Conscious: It includes the thoughts, feelings and actions of which people are aware.
(ii) Preconscious: It includes mental activity of which people may become aware only if they attend to it closely.
(iii) Unconscious: It includes mental activity that people are unaware of.

Q.14. Compare the trait approaches given by Allport and Cattell to understand personality.

Allport proposed that individuals possess a number of traits, which are dynamic in nature. He categorized traits as follows:
(a) Cardinal traits: These indicate the goal around which a person’s entire life seems to revolve. For example, Mahatma Gandhi’s non-violence is identified as Gandhian trait.
(b) Central traits: These traits like warm, sincere, diligent are often used in writing a job recommendation.
(c) Secondary traits: These are least generalized characteristics such as ‘likes mangoes’ or ‘prefers ethnic clothes’.
Cattell developed a common personality structure on which a person differs. He applied a statistical technique called factor analysis to discover the common structures.
He distinguished between source traits and surface traits, source traits are stable and considered as building blocks of personality. Surface traits result out of interaction with source traits.He developed a test called 16 PF (16 Personality Factors) for the assessment of personality.

Q.15. What are behaviour ratings? Give two limitations of behaviour ratings.
OR
Explain behaviour ratings used in assessment of personality.

In behavioural ratings the subjects are asked to put individuals whom they know into categories in terms of their behavioural qualities. The categories may involve numbers or descriptive adjectives. Behaviour ratings are used for assessment of personality in educational and industrial settings. In this, individuals are put into certain categories or ratings in terms of their behavioural qualities such as strongly disagree, disagree, neutral, agree and strongly agree.
Limitations of behaviour ratings are:
(a) A favourable or unfavourable trait forms a basis of a rater’s overall judgment of a person. This tendency is known as halo effect.
(b) Raters have a tendency to place individuals either in the middle of the scale (called middle category bias) or in extreme positions (called extreme response bias).

Q.16. Discuss Erich Fromm’s theory of personality

Erich Fromm viewed human beings as social beings who could be understood in terms of the relationship with others. He argued that psychological qualities such as growth and realization of potentials resulted from desire for freedom and striving for justice and truth.

Q.17. Is personality a dynamic organization? Explain.

Dynamic means change due to internal or external demands. Allport proposed that individuals possess a number of traits which are dynamic in nature. They determine behaviour in such a manner that an individual approaches different situations with similar plans. He acknowledged that people sharing the same traits might express them in different ways, and any variation in traits would elicit a different response in the samen situation.

Q.18. What are self-report measures? Explain three self-report measures with examples.

Self-report measures are structured measures that require subjects to give responses using some kind of rating scale. The method requires the subject to objectively report his/her feelings with respect to various items. They are scored in quantitative terms and interpreted on the basis of norms developed for the test. Some of the self-report measures are:
(i) The Minnesota Multiphase Personality Inventory (MMPI): It contains 567 statements in which the subject has to state true or false. The test is divided into 10 subsets and diagnoses depression, hysteria, psychopathology, schizophrenia, mania, social-introversion etc.
(ii) Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ): This test measures personality traits on three dimensions Introversion-Extraversion, Neuroticism-Emotional stability and Psychoticism-Sociability.
(iii) Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (16 PF): This test was developed by Cattell. On the basis of his studies, he identified a large set of personality descriptors, which were subjected to factor analysis to identify the basic personality structure.
This test provides with declarative statements and the subject responds to a specific situation by choosing from a set of given alternatives.

Q.19. State the characteristics of Type A, Type B, Type C and Type D personality.

Type A personality possess high motivation, lack patience, feel short of time, seem to be in a hurry and feel burdened with work. They are susceptible to problems like hypertension and coronary heart disease.
Type B personality are individuals who have absence of Type-A traits.
Type C personality are prone to cancer. Individual characterised by this personality are cooperative, unassertive and patient. They suppress their negative emotions such as anger and show compliance to authority.
Type D personality are people characterised by proneness to depression.

Q.20. Explain the techniques of behavioural analysis used in personality assessment.
OR
Describe the two procedure of behavioural analysis.

The techniques of behavioural analysis used in personality assessment are:

• Interview: This involves seeking information from a person on a one-to-one basis. This can be structured or unstructured. For example, an employer selecting employees for his/her organization.
• Observation: This involves employing systematic, organized and objective procedures to record behavioural phenomenon occurring in a natural situation. This can be participant or non-participant in nature. E.g. observing mother-child interactions.
• Behaviour ratings are used for assessment of personality in educational and industrial settings. In this, individuals are put into certain categories in terms of their behavioural qualities. These ratings have drawbacks such as halo effect, middle category bias and extreme response bias.
• Nomination: This method is used in obtaining peer assessment. In this each person is asked to choose one or more persons of the group with whom s/he would like to work, study, play or participate in an activity. The person may be asked to specify the reason for his or her choices.
• Situational Tests: The most commonly used test of this kind is the situational stress test. It involves a kind of role-playing in which a person performs a task with other persons who are non-cooperative and interfering. Thus this test provides us with information about how a person behaves under stressful situations.

Q.21. Differentiate between repression and regression.

In Repression anxiety-provoking behaviours or thoughts are totally dismissed by the unconscious. When people repress a feeling or desire, they become totally unaware of that wish or desire.Regression occurs when a person’s resolution of problems at any stage of development is less than adequate. In this situation, people display behaviours typical of a less mature stage of development.

Q.22. Explain how projective techniques assess personality. Which projective tests of personality are widely used by psychologists?

Projective techniques were developed to assess unconscious motives and feelings. These techniques are based on the assumption that a less structured or unstructured stimulus or an ambiguous situation will allow the individual to project his/her feelings, desires and needs on to that situation. The projective tests widely used by psychologists are:
(i) Rorschach Inkblot
(ii) Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
(iii) Rosenzweig’s Picture-Frustration Study (P-F Study)
(iv) Sentence Completion
(v) Draw-a Person Test

Q.23. How does Freud explain the structure of personality?

According to Freud, there are three structural elements of personality:
(i) Id – It deals with immediate gratification of primitive needs, sexual desires and aggressive impulses. It is based on the pleasure principle in which people seek pleasure and try to avoid pain. For example, a boy who wants an ice-cream cone,will grab the cone and eat it.
(ii) Ego – It grows out of id and seeks to satisfy an individual’s instinctual needs in accordance with reality. It works on the reality principle. For example, a boy who wants an ice-cream cone, will ask for permission to eat the cone.
(iii) Superego – The superego tells the id and ego whether gratification in a particular instance is ethical. It is the administrative division of personality. For example, a boy who wants an ice-cream cone, his superego will indicate whether his behaviour is morally correct. Obtaining the ice-cream cone will create guilt, fear or anxiety in the boy.
Unconscious is composed of these three competing forces. In some people, the id is stronger while in others it is the superego. The relative strength of the id, ego and superego determines each person’s stability. The instinctual life force that energizes the id is called libido. It works on the pleasure principle and seeks immediate gratification.

Q.24. What is meant by delay of gratification? Discuss the techniques used for self-control.

Learning to delay or defer the gratification of needs is called self-control. For example, fasting in vrata or roza.
The psychological techniques of self-control are:
(i) Observation of our own behaviour: This refers to changing, modifying or strengthening certain aspects of self.
(ii) Self instruction: This refers to instructing ourselves to do something and behave accordingly.
(iii) Self-reinforcement: This involves rewarding behaviours that have pleasant consequences.
For e.g., going to a movie after doing well in exams.

Q.25. What is trait approach to personality? How does it differ from type approach?

Trait approach focuses on the specific psychological attributes along which individuals tend to differ in consistent and stable ways. For example, an individual with extraversion traits are active, gregarious, impulsive and thrill-seeking.
Type approaches comprehend human personality by examining certain broad patterns in the observed behavioural characteristics of individuals. For example, Type-A personality possesses high motivation, lack patience, feel short of time, are in a great hurry and always feel burdened with work.

Q.26. What is self? How does the Indian notion of self differ from the Western notion?

Self refers to the totality of an individual’s conscious experiences, ideas, thoughts and feelings with regard to himself or herself. A newly born child has no idea about his self.
As a child grows older, the idea of self emerges and its formation begins. Parents, peer group and teachers help in formation of self. Our interaction with other people, our experiences, and the meaning we give to them, serve as the basis of our self.
Many aspects of self are linked with the characteristic features of the culture in which one lives.
Analysis of self in Indian cultural context shows many features that are distinct from those found in the Western cultural context. Western cultures are characterized as individualistic, with rigid boundaries between self and others whereas Asian cultures are characterized as collectivistic with flexible boundaries between self and others.

Q.27. Describe different stages of personality development proposed by Freud.

The stages of personality are:

• Oral Stage: It spans between 0 to 1.5 years of age in which the newborn’s or the infant’s mouth is the pleasure seeking centre. The infant achieves oral gratification through feeding, thumb sucking, biting and babbling.
• Anal Stage: It spans between 1.5 to 3 years of age in which the anal area gives pleasurable feelings. The child experiences pleasure by retention or expulsion of bowels.
• Phallic Stage: This stage spans between 3 to 6 years of age and the pleasure seeking area are the genitals. The children begin to realize the relationship between males and females and become aware of the relationship between their parents. The male child experiences the Oedipus complex which involves love for the mother, hostility towards the father and the consequent fear of punishment or castration by the father (Oedipus was a Greek king who unknowingly killed his father and then married his mother). The girls at this stage develop Electra complex in which the girls show love for their father and symbolically marry him and raise a family (Electra was a Greek character who induced her brother to kill their mother). By the end of this stage,the Oedipus complex and the Electra complex are resolved in which boys give up sexual feelings for their mothers and begin to see their fathers as role models rather than as rivals while the girls give up their sexual desires for their father and identify with their mother.
• Latency Stage: This stage spans between 6 to 12 years of age. During this period the child continues to grow physically, but sexual urges are relatively inactive.Much of the child’s energy is channeled into social or achievement-related activities.
• Genital Stage: This stage spans between 12 to 18 years of age and the repressed feelings of the earlier stages are once again exhibited. People learn to deal with members of opposite sex in a socially and sexually matured way.